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LOT 1520
Luristan Socketted Bronze Axe Head Sar-e Tabar
CIRCA 2200-1600 B.C.
4 1/8 in. (308 grams, 10.6 cm).
Comprising a wide curving blade and long neck with a band of herringbone decoration at the base, tubular neck with claw-like extension to the rear and a decorative diagonal band to both sides.
ProvenanceAcquired on the Swiss art market, 1997.
Private collection, Europe.
Cf. Gorelik, M., Weapons of Ancient East, IV millennium BC-IV century BC, Saint Petersburg, 2003, pl.XXI, nos.51,67, for the type; Khorasani, M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran. The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, cat.344, for similar.
FootnotesSimilar examples of axeheads were produced in Luristan, and early parallels date back to 2200 B.C. They have moulding bands at the base, and the shaft is often crosshatched, showing different lozenge-shaped figures.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1520
Luristan Socketted Bronze Axe Head Sar-e Tabar
Estimate £500 - 700€580 - 810 (for guidance only)$680 - 950 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£250 (EUR 290; USD 338) ‡+BP*
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Bids: 1 | Current Bid: £5
Piriform body with dome filler-hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 536 grams, 12.7 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s. Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 15 July 2019 and titled 'Eastern Roman Empire - Greek Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade (μεσαίον kακάβιον) 9th-11th century AD'.
Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια, where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form. -
Roman Lead Slingshot of Quintus Sertorius
Circa 82-72 B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (+bp*)
Bids: 2 | Current Bid: £10
Lentoid in form with raised legend to reverse 'Q.SERT / PRO C'; casting seam and flange. 59.6 grams, 37 mm
Acquired on the UK art market, early 2000s. Property of a London, UK, antiquarian.
The inscription may refer to Quintus Sertorius, the Roman statesman and general (123-72 BC). In late 82 BC, Sertorius, linked to the party of populares of Gaius Marius, was proscribed by Sulla and forced from his province in Hispania. However, he soon returned in early 80 BC, representing himself as a Roman proconsul resisting the Sullan regime at Rome. Being Proconsul in this Hispania from 82 to 73 B.C., the slingshots of his army were bearing the inscription 'Q.SERT / PRO C' (Quintus Sertorius Proconsul). -
Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
14th-15th century A.D.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5
Piriform in profile with a stepped neck, incised decoration; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 385 grams, 16 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s. Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 15 July 2019 and titled 'Eastern Roman Empire - Greek Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade (μεσαίον kακάβιον) 9th-11th century AD'.
Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια, where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form.
